The Apple Watch 11th Series Evaluation: Wrist-Flickingly Good with Extended Battery Performance

Our newest Apple Watch Series 11 introduces the one thing the majority truly desire from a smartwatch: improved power endurance.

In other aspects, this latest version acts as a direct replacement to the Series 10, maintaining similarity in styling, dimensions and capabilities, with many of its upgrades coming from the operating system.

The latest version furthermore £30 cheaper for UK customers, priced starting at £369 (449 euros/$399 USD/A$679), placed higher than the recently updated SE model costing £219 in the budget category and the premium Ultra 3 at £749 for top-tier users.

Design and Display

Like last year's Series Ten, the new model is just 9.7 millimeters in thickness, creating a slim fit to the wrist, easy to sneak below clothing plus more pleasant during sleep.

This 2,000-nit display is plenty bright for seeing in various lighting, staying legible at various perspectives, which makes taking a peek for timekeeping or alerts straightforward.

It is covered by glass that is double the scratch resistance compared to previous models, while not reaching the hardness compared to sapphire, that remains exclusive for the more expensive titanium editions.

Power and Endurance

The new watch utilizes the same S10 chip from the previous generation but now supports 5G connectivity option and stronger reception during situations exploring remote areas.

Power cells demonstrate growth in capacity approximately 10 percent with the smaller and 46 millimeter models correspondingly.

Larger model achieved approximately 48 hours in testing including sleep monitoring excluding workout sessions.

Typical wearers will just about monitor 48 hours including sleep until recharge becomes necessary, which takes 66 minutes with a 20-watt or more powerful adapter (sold separately), reaching approximately three-quarters charge in 30 minutes.

Should you engage in exercise, it will last around 8 hours of tracking, which is long enough to complete marathons or extended activities.

Device Details

• Dimensions: Two size variants
• Profile depth: 9.7mm
• Weight: approximately 30-37 grams
• Processor: S10 processor
• Storage: 64 gigabytes
• Operating system: watchOS 26
• Swim capability: 50 meters (5 atmospheres)
• Monitoring features: HR, ECG, spO2, temp, Depth gauge, Microphone, speaker, Near-field communication, GNSS, compass, Altimeter
• Connectivity: Bluetooth technology, Wi-Fi connectivity, NFC capability, UWB, optional 5G

Operating System Updates

The latest device includes watchOS 26, which runs on every version from 2020's Series 6 and later.

Featuring the latest transparent design elements, resulting in interface components partially transparent, along with additional display styles: a big digital interface named Flow sensitive to gestures and an analogue face named Exactograph, dividing hours, minutes and seconds into their own dials.

The standout addition involves wrist movements, where you rapidly twist your wrist away from you then returning to dismiss things and go back to the main interface.

It works even without looking at the device to view the screen, meaning you can turn off alerts using a quick gesture of the wrist.

Wellness Monitoring

This smartwatch includes the same comprehensive wellness tracking package of features found in earlier versions while introducing a couple of new features and a redesigned fitness program.

High BP warnings check for symptoms of high blood pressure over a 30-day period, notifying you to consult professionals if cardiac metrics shows possibility of undetected issues.

Enhanced sleep analysis makes Apple's sleep tracking more straightforward to analyze, like other brands from multiple companies.

Each morning the screen presents a percentage score that is broken down in three sections: duration, bedtime and interruptions, all being self-explanatory and available in the Health app on your smartphone as well.

Exercise companion functions as intelligent training utilizing your past activity records to deliver encouragement before and after workouts, including identifying previous running sessions three times this week and the level of effort you achieved.

Also featuring spoken alerts when you reach particular goals during exercise, like specific speed, heart rate, length, time or additional measurements.

Users can select from three speaking tones, which speak to you over Bluetooth headphones paired with the device across twelve exercise types, including walking, running or cycling.

However, it only works if you have with you your iPhone 15 Pro or later alongside, proving inconvenient sufficient to avoid the feature preventing inconvenience with a phone on runs.

Sustainability and Environment

Apple says power cells will endure exceeding 1000 full power cycles maintaining 80 percent of initial performance with replacement available at £95 cost.

Service pricing ranges approximately £300-400 depending on the model.

Materials include significant amounts of recycled material including aluminium, cobalt, copper elements, glass, gold, lithium, uncommon minerals, steel, tin, {titanium|